Best place to live in Alberta?

[HeavyD111]

Hopefully will get some interesting replies, as everyone has an opinion..

Currently residing in Regina and NOT enjoying it here at all. We lived in Medicine Hat for a year and really liked it there, but he job market was brutal. Still, we got to appreciate some of what Alberta has to offer and we are looking for the best combination of jobs, wages vs expense, etc..

We are starting over...where should we consider and why?

Thanks everyone

 

[sirkdev]

Hopefully will get some interesting replies, as everyone has an opinion..

Currently residing in Regina and NOT enjoying it here at all. We lived in Medicine Hat for a year and really liked it there, but he job market was brutal. Still, we got to appreciate some of what Alberta has to offer and we are looking for the best combination of jobs, wages vs expense, etc..

We are starting over...where should we consider and why?

Thanks everyone

What do you do for a career, hobbies, do you have kids? Do they have to have access to special facilities? Recreation or scholastically? Most importantly a budget and what you desire in a property. Urban, rural?

 

[Bnorth]

For me it would have to be southern alberta Calgary is a great city but definitely pricey. That said I know a few guys that live west of Red Deer and they seem to have it pretty good out that way.

 

[Bogger]

If 300 people reply, there will be 300 opinions....

I would not leave where I am, West of Edmonton on Wabamun Lake. Spruce/Stony are 20 mins away and have everything a person could need while Edmonton is another 20 mins and has everything a person could want. Sledding distance to Kims#1 & Beach Corner Liquor

We were talking with friends this weekend about the possibility of moving to Valemount, as much as Vale would be a cool place to live all things considered even if I could make the same wage and be home every night out there it would be tough to leave the set up we have now. I figure if I were ever to move it would have to be further into BC where I could still walk to my Dock yet be closer than 4hrs to the mountains.

 

[HeavyD111]

I am a 4th class power engineer halfway through my 3rd, field is becoming flooded with grads though, so eyeing other opportunities possibly. Love cars/trucks, lots of outdoor stuff including hiking, cycling, and hopefully getting back into offroad riding (either dirt bike or side by side). No kids, spouse wants to return to school at SAIT or NAIT hence the push to return to AB, and the fact we pay $1500 for a crappy condo here in Regina just seals the deal. an even Calgary be that much worse?

 

[Cummins610]

Fort saskatchewan/Sherwood park/St. Albert. Lots of 4th class opportunities around ft sask

 

[sirkdev]

I am a 4th class power engineer halfway through my 3rd, field is becoming flooded with grads though, so eyeing other opportunities possibly. Love cars/trucks, lots of outdoor stuff including hiking, cycling, and hopefully getting back into offroad riding (either dirt bike or side by side). No kids, spouse wants to return to school at SAIT or NAIT hence the push to return to AB, and the fact we pay $1500 for a crappy condo here in Regina just seals the deal. an even Calgary be that much worse?

I know its crappy timing but... I would try and get on in fort mac move to southern BC and live the life... however fort sask, sherwood park are likely going to have more opportunities available right now. I grew up around calgary and do miss it, love the atmosphere but there is little in the way of work for me as well I also am a PE

 

[tater]

Okotoks!! Close to city. Small town feeling. Has most major shopping options. Big hospital nearby, decent housing market. We lived on acreage outside of chestermere for 10 years and looked at Chestermere, cochrane, airdrie, high river and okotoks. It was easy decision to move here. Plus it's easy to get on highway to koocanusa every weekend !

 

[HeavyD111]

Yes, southern BC is a great idea. Castlegar and that area seems to have a lot to offer, and I am sure there are many other beautiful places to choose from. We like road tripping to the US so it sure wouldn't hurt to be near the border.

Okotoks I have heard is pretty nice too. PE is a great job, but sometimes I wish I had taken something medical as there always hospitals but only so many plants to choose from. Makes getting into the desired area a little tougher.

 

[ferniesnow]

You know what southern Alberta has to offer. Lethbridge is another thought but I don't know about your job opportunities. Close to the border tripping, education and shopping are great, and housing is affordable. Close to the BC play land and close to Calgary. I would think pretty much anywhere one could get into ownership of a house for what you are paying in rent.

The SE corner of BC has lots to offer with the mines and service industries. Work and all the fun type amenities. Good luck.

 

[Absledder]

This is totally based on personal opinion. Some guys love big cities, myself I can't stand them. Sometimes I find myself cursing how busy town has become, and that's with less than 10,000 official residents(quite a few transient workers though). I'm a PE with my 3rd, and although I'd like to move to B.C someday, I've never heard of anybody preferring to work in pulp mills over thermal oil. Anywhere in the okanagan would be awesome though, great summers and nice and close for sledding in the winter.


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[Joholio]

Central Ab is da place to be

 

[HeavyD111]

Lethbridge has been our #1 choice for a while, but for a PE good luck. Just applied at Richardson seeds for the 3rd time , but there are a lot of PEs out there now.

Brother hauls fuel in Bonnyville, he says its pretty busy up there.


Appreciate the replies. We just want to know why some like certain places, and we are quite enjoying the responses.

 

[Puba]

I can't stand the city life, live on an acreage just outside of Stony Plain. Room to move, store toys. Lots of PE jobs around North central AB.

 

[Dazzler]

For a young couple I would say central Ab, Red deer, west of Edmonton for several reasons, far better job opportunities if you do not want to work down town in a city. Olds and north get four seasons, they get a real winter and definitely get a better summer/growing season than south of Olds.. In the Calgary area we get several chinooks through out the winter, they are hard on, joints, headaches and snow. Then every 6 - 7 years we might get a good summer but usually we can count on a night or two of frost dam near every month of the year. Housing and property is much cheaper north of Calgary as well....

 

[oler1234]

If you like being outside and heading west... Canmore. Mountain views all day, tons of biking, hiking, fishing, hunting within 30minutes. Great atmosphere and the town upkeep is pretty good. Good access for heading east if you need. And the plus side, 1.5hrs from golden or radium, 3hrs to revy, and so on. skiing is within 1hour commute.

Calgary has opportunity but higher cost of living. Has a little bit of everything.

lethbridge has had a nice city with low cost of living, housing down there is substantially cheaper. Same distance west as Calgary would be. Hot summers, but the wind....

always though cochrane would be a good place to be, don't know much about it

lived in camrose for a while, nice and quiet. A lot like the airdrie of Calgary but smaller. Full of families or retirement people.

lived in red deer, great if your single. Sucks for getting to the mountains. Good boating within 1.5hrs. Lots of biking and quadding to be done around there.

wetaskiwin, enough said

 

[j335]

If you're an outdoorsman and like lakes NE Alberta, Lakeland area. Athabasca, lac la biche, bonnyville, cold lake. Lakes are hard to come by in Alberta, except in the NE there's a ton, take a look at a map. Summers are awesome, long and usually pretty warm.
Calgary is a way better city to live in over Edmonton IMO. Also the weather is tropical, comparing to where I grew up in northern Alberta. Summers aren't too warm though, but it is one of the sunniest cities in North America.
If you want mountains around Calgary is good.
Basically Pro's and cons to every city, I'd suggest making a list of needs/wants.

 

[HeavyD111]

So many good choices. If this was 1995 and everything was still booming, we would just pack up and head wherever to start over as many of my old school friends did back then. Now it is a different deal out there, as we found out when we tried Medicine Hat for a year. Couldn't get a job anywhere, so we have to be smarter this time. List is a good idea, we will try that.

 

[cdnredneck_t3]

HeavyD111, when will you have your 3rd class completed? Methanex is planning an expansion and will be looking for guys again soon.

 

[brew_doo]

I moved to Whitecourt in '99 from Birch Hills Saskatchewan and am very proud to call it home. Plenty of great job opportunities in the oil & gas industry and forrest industry. Its a great community with plenty to offer... lots of great clubs to get involved in. Tons of outdoor recreation, close enough to the mountains, and only an hour and a half to Edmonton but honestly I find my self going there less all the time as Whitecourt has all I need most of the time. There truly are a lot of great people in this town and my wife and I love it here.